Key unit



' H. E. VON KERSBURG I Nov; 19, 1929.

KEY UNIT Filed Jan. 15, 1928 ZSheets-Sheet 2 I INVEN TOR. BY HARRY E. V Keassuaa Fig.2

A TTORNEY.

Patented new. is, iees INC., on NEW l=I."I., A CORPORATION or ew YORK KEY nrtrr Application filed January 13, 1928. Serial No. 246,439. g

The present invention relates to a key unit or key filing cabinet, or in other .words a cabinet in which the locker keys are hung up and stored when not in use by the numerous employees of a business establishment,

and for which purpose individual key-hooks are provided upon which perforatedtags in different colors are hung, indicating the various classes of occupants of the lockers and the unoccupied lockers.

The invention further consists in the combinations and arrangements of elements hereinafter described and particularly set forth in the accompanying claim.

An object of the invention is to so construct and furnish the cabinet that. all sections thereof are easily and equally accessible for the purpose set forth, at the same time giving it a neat appearance and assuring a safeguard against locker keys getting into possession of unauthorized persons.

Furthermore, the cabinet is so arranged that the custodian thereof may at a glance.-

ascertain which of the lockers are occupied and the class of the respective lockers.

The use of the cabinet is evidently not limited to workmen in a factory or employees in a store, but it is also suitable for keeping the keys for the rooms in a large office buildin g, apartment house, hotel, and so forth.

In the accompanying drawingone embodiment of the intention is illustrated, and

Figure 1 is a front-elevation of the cabinet open; I I I Figure 2 a vertical sectional view taken along line 22 of Figure 1; v I,

Figure 3 a fragmentary sectional view taken along line 33 of Figure2;

Figures 4 and 5 are fragmentary sectional V V r I and its uprlght, a handle 22 is secured to the views in larger scale takenalong lines i=4: and 55 of Figures 2 and 1, respectively;

Figure 6 is aview similar to Figure 3, showing the cabinet as built of metal exclusively; and,

Figure 7 shows a colored tag.

Referring now to the drawings in which the same reference characters refer to the same parts in the difierent views, reference numeral 7 represents a cabinet of the class described and which in Figures 1 and 2 has the hinges of the panel have just emerged by, crosses, each HARRY E. VON KERSBUE-G, on soaasnarin, NEW YORK, AssrGNoR TO R. H. I1IACYG 00., 1

been shown as a double-deck or two-story key-unit, but which may, ofcourse, contain several more stories or only one, in accordance with special requirements. v

The cabinet has an open front, side walls 8, rear wall 9, top 10, and bottom 11; and

when built inseveral stories has also inter mediate floors 12, in this manner providing superimposed compartments or chambers.

On the upper side of the bottom 11 and the underside of the top 10 are provided parallel grooves 13 and 14,] respectively, running in the length direction of the cabinet and opening into the face or open end thereof. Similar and corresponding grooves 15 and 16 are also found'on the upper and lower sides of the floorfmember, 12. These grooves form gu de-Ways for sliding uprights 17 which are permitted to have limited forward and rearward movements in the cabinet. For this reasonstops are provided which preferably consist cf studs orhdowels 18 driven into thebottomj 11 and floor {12 adjacent to the cabinet opening and corresponding pins or ppgs 19 near the bottom edge of the uprights 1 g v I Iv On the forwardor outer edge of each upi right is hinged as at 20 a. panel 21 adapted to 7 swing, as indicated by dotted lines'in Figure'3, in both directions, out'of the planejof' the grooves or the upright 17 where the panel together with its upright is drawn out of the compartment. Accordingly, it has been so arranged that whenthe stops 18, 19 contact,

from the cabinet as best seen in Figures 2 and 3. Either hook and-eye orleaf-hinge 20 may beused. V

. To facilitate the. sliding out of' the' panel tively or marked in some other suitable man? ner foridentification. i m

' stead of vertical direction; or it may be flexible'or constructed as a roll-curtain door. The door is provided with latch 26 or regular lock to keep the cabinet locked so that the keys are under control of the custodian.

The cabinet is mounted on a suitable stand or regular filing form 27 preferably provided with a fiattop 28 which projects in forward direction of the cabinet in order to form a support for the door 24 when it is open and serves as a table, as best seen in Figures 1- 'and2. M g p -The cabinet as described above is intended to be built mainly of wood. For offices in general and as protection against fire, an allmetal construction is preferable and is illustrated in Figure 6.

The body 30 of the cabinet comprising sides, back, top, bottom, and floors are here shown made of single sheet metal, but may of course also have double sheeting" which then wouldbe spaced apart to provide air spaces. Around the'front opening the sheet metal is folded back asat 31 to furnish a hook member. This engages with a corresponding hook member 32 ofa two-plyreinforcing facing or casing 33 surrounding the entire opening of the cabinet andprojecting forwardly ,cf the body 30. In this manner an offset is formed between the inner surfaces of the body and the corresponding ones .of the casing as clearly shown in the figure. i I

The grooves or guide-ways 34 are in this instance formedby corrugating the top and bottom 35 of the cabinet body 30 or by using separate channels securedv thereto. As before uprights 36 are adapted to engagexa'nd slide in the top and bottom guide-ways but 7 instead of being made solid they are preferably'hollow as indicated. The stops 18 for limiting the sliding movement are here secured in the casing 33 and adapted to en gage withcorresponding pegs 19 on theuprights 36. .In=this case .a metal door is hinged to the front edge of the casing.

Double acting hinges connect as before thefront edge of the. sliding upright with the corresponding panel '38 .to permit the latter to swing in both directions out of the vertical plane of the upright. The panel is here constructed of a channel-shapedmetallic frame 39, in the grooves of which is held firmly a board 140 of sheet metal. On this board are fixed a series of hooks 23 projecting from projecting rcinforci.

As before, the hooks are preferably numbered or given some distinguishing mark so that the keys may be easily located. A handle 22 is fastened on the forward-edge of the frame 39. A stand 27 is also in this case provided for the cabinet but ma de of metal instead of wood.

.Vith the panels lettered or labeled and the key hooks numbered it will now be very easy to locate the hook for the key desired. After the deer 24 has been opened, one of the panels carrying the ccrrect designation is neXt drawn out by gripping handle 22. The panel 'is thereupon swung to the right or the left de- I pending on which side the particular hook 23 i is located for the desired key. After all the keys needed have been removed, thepanels carry tags 40 to indicate whether the locker,

to which a particular key belongs, is'occupied or unoccupied, and .alse the class of 1ts occupant. The tags have accordingly different colors or may carry other distinguishing marks (see Figure 7 It is understood thattheinvention is not limited to the details of construction here feature of the invention is shown and described, but that these may be A sheet metal cabinet having superposed compartments and .an open front, vertical panels mounted in each of said compartments,

each of the said panels being hingedly V:

mounted en a hollow upright, and a door hinged to the bottom of said cabinet for closing both vcsnipartments the metal around the open front of. the cabinet being reversely bent to form an open channel in which is engaged a ing frame members having inturned edges to form inwardly facing grooves in which are mounted integral metalpanels In witness whereof, I have hereunto set my hand at New York cityNew York, this 6th day of December, A. D. nineteen hundred and twenty-seven.

H RR VON knnssune.

both sides of the board, each panel carrying casing offset from the side of said cabinet, the said cablnet having 

